It's dark as a dungeon
and damp as the dew, Where the danger is double and pleasures are few,
Where the rain never falls and the sun never shines, It's dark as a
dungeon way down in the mine.~ Merle Travis, "Dark as a
Dungeon"

A Tribute to
Pennsylvania's
Anthracite MinersDedicated to my Dad,
my
Grandfathers,
and all the brave souls who worked in, and lived their lives around,
the
coal mines of Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania.

They
are deeply missed
and greatly admired.

Sign
the Guest Book
Please feel free to stop by and sign in.
We love hearing from folks
who have a connection to the Pennsylvania Anthracite Area.
Read the Archives of the old guestbook
through February 2003

I
grew up, and spent the first 40 years of my life, in Zerbe,
Pennsylvania. (Known to the locals as
"Newtown"). Located in the Western part of Schuylkill
County, it
is a town well accustomed to mining and coal-related jobs. It is a
small town (population
about 300ish) and although everyone knows everyone else's business,
they are usually the
first ones to come to help others in their time of need.

I am a "coal-cracker" and
proud of
it. My father and grandfathers were involved in mining almost all of
their lives, and when
not actually working deep inside the mine itself, they were involved in
other jobs which
were directly related to coal. One grandfather suffered a stroke at the
mine one day. The
mine owners refused to take him home so he walked to his house several
miles away.

My other grandfather and my
Dad contracted
Black Lung. It's a hideous disease that comes from the damage to your
lungs after
breathing in the coal dust for years. Almost everyone who ever worked
in the mines
contracts it to some degree. The miners or mine workers who have the
disease are supposed
to be entitled to a benefits program, but you have to pass several
stringent
"tests" before you are awarded benefits. Due to the tons of
bureaucratic red
tape and general "run around" that sometimes comes with dealing with
the government and insurance
companies (who now pay the benefits since the Social Security
Administration stop
accepting claims for disability due to the disease in 1973), many of
them die before their
cases are ever heard in court...

It's a hard job, and one of
the most
dangerous, but Anthracite Miners were not afraid of hard work...it's
all they knew, and
they did it to support their families. Many were immigrants who worked
hard and suffered
every day just because they wanted a better life for their families.
Many were mere boys
working 10 and 12 hours a day processing coal in the breakers. Some
miners worked in
"bootleg" mines, meaning they worked the land without the land owners
or the
government knowing about it. They were not trying to cheat anyone. They
only wanted to make a living doing what they could with what was
available to them...

The links below explain
more about my heritage
in general, Anthracite mining and the Coal Region of Pennsylvania,
Schuylkill
County specific information, and info on the Molly
Maguires, a group of mine workers who rebelled against the wealthy mine
owners because of
conditions they were subjected to in the mines and in their daily lives.

This is Indian
Head Colliery outside Newtown
in Schuylkill County. This breaker was about a mile from my home and my
father hauled
coal from there to be delivered to New York, Philadelphia and
everywhere in
between. This gorgeous photo was taken by Scott Herring, a photographer
who has dedicated years to capturing the essence of the Anthracite
Region. Thank you Scott.

A
great tragedy
in our region -The Centralia
Mine Fire
Started in a garbage dump in the early 1960's, the fire
traveled into the old mine workings in the mountain and started to burn
the coal vein that
remained. It has continued burning despite the Federal Government's
assurances that it
would "burn out" and then their botched "efforts" to extinguish it.
Having burned under the town of Centralia, the residents were forced to
give up their
homes and move. Some left early in the government buyout program
and those that
remained -- 20 people-- were told they must leave by the end of
1997. A
few still remain... MORE>

...
Anthracite and Schuylkill County Links ...To avoid losing
this site, Netscape and Explorer users, right click on a link and choose
"Open in New Window". Then simply close the new window when
finished.

UPDATED
07 January 2009

Visit our Shoppe
and purchase great books and more about Anthracite Mining, Centralia,
and the Schuylkill County Area. It's easy, secure and convenient!

What is Anthracite,
where does it come from, and what do you do with it?

Yuengling
Beer - Local brewery with some very popular products, including
their Porter, Chesterfield Ale and Black and Tan. Established in
1829, Yuengling stakes it's claim as "America's Oldest Brewery".

Schuylkill Living Magazine
- Features and articles focusing on local customs, architecture,
history, people and places in the county.

Coal Miner's Statue -
Erected at the corner of Route 901 and 209 in Branch Township,
Schuylkill County (Between Pottsville and Minersville), this statue
pays homage to the hard working people of the Anthracite region.

Anthracite history and information in
song - Van Wagner's site
highlights his music reflecting his life spent in the rural hills of
Pennsylvania - which you can purchase on-line - links of interest
to music of the area and more.